DCC Sat 1XI Report 2007

Played – 22: Won – 12: WD – 3: LD – 0: Lost – 3: Abd – 3:

Cricketers will remember the summer of 2007 across the country as one of the wettest recorded. The cricketers of Dorridge 1^st XI however have the joy of having achieved promotion to Division One of the BDPCL. This was my first season as captain having joined the club back in 2002. A dream start and hopefully the first of many successes.

A fantastic start meant at the end of May we were unbeaten and sitting at the top of the league table. We achieved consecutive victories against Evesham by 112 runs (Ball 178*, Mohamed 57, Wing 3-25 & Seal 3-56), Bridgnorth by 8 wickets (Ball 6-28, Abdullah 3-18 & Wing 34*), Berkswell by 28 runs (Mohamed 5-17 & Ball 4-47) and Fordhouses by 221 runs (Ball 88, Mohamed 55 & Ball 3-21 & Abdullah 3-16), which provided a great platform to launch our promotion challenge.

Then came June …………..

We lost 3 games in 2007 and they all came in June. They were against the top sides and all away from home. Old Elizabethans by 60 runs (Hafeez 53* & Ball 3-51), Newport by 7 wickets (Seal 32*) on a damp wicket and Attock by 9 wickets (Thornley 39) in a rain reduced game. Our only positive result was a winning draw against Aston Unity (Jamiel 101*, Ball 57, Rexworthy 47, Seal 45* & Hafeez 5-57). Imran Jamiel scored his maiden hundred and Rob Rexworthy, a new addition to the squad from the West Country, struck an aggressive 47. It was going to be imperative for the side to be able to bounce back from these defeats and show a fighting spirit. The side responded superbly and in our next game we secured a convincing winning draw against Penn (Ball 153*, Seal 64 & Ball 4-36).We unfortunately were unable to take the last Penn wicket to win the game.

Further comprehensive wins were secured in July and August against Evesham by 8 wickets (Ball 5-42, Seal 5-34 & Abdullah 50*), Berkswell by 10 wickets (Mohamed 3-15 & 52*, Jamiel 68*), Fordhouses by 8 wickets Mohamed 6-23 & Jamiel 71*), Tamworth by 3 wickets (Ball 3-28 & 92 & Mohamed 3-56 and Aston Unity by 110 runs (Ball 100* & 3-25, Hafeez 74, Seal 3-18).

I have highlighted 5 games that were decisive in our 2007 campaign:

Game One - 19^th May v Berkswell (Away)

Dorridge lost the toss and were asked to bat on a damp wicket. We struggled to cope with the accurate bowling and conditions and managed to scrape to 125. This included a crucial partnership of 21 for the 10^th wicket. James Parks 14* and Rob Rexworthy 19. Rob showed what a good eye he had with a fine display of clean hitting over the infield and was very unfortunate to eventually hole out at deep mid-wicket.

With Berkswell at 58 for 2 in reply after 12 overs it seemed that it was not be our day. Enter Waqar Mohamed the Dorridge veteran. Waqar showed all his experience in a super bowling display (5-17) with great support from Dave Ball (4-47) that saw Berkswell collapse to 97 all out. Two of Waqar’s victims were sharp stumpings by James Parks. It seemed that the impossible had been achieved and this gave the team a great confidence boost early in the season.

Game Two - 7^th July v Penn (Home)

As mentioned earlier we had lost 3 games in June and this was the turnaround game. We were back on home turf but found ourselves in deep trouble at 26 for 4 after being put into bat. Dave Ball (153*) and Elliott Seal (64) put on 115 for the 5^th wicket and we were back in the game. Dave led by example and this was one of many fantastic hundreds during the season. Elliott batted very well displaying good shot selection and maturity whilst supporting Dave. This was a glimpse of Elliott’s batting ability, which is very encouraging, and hopefully we can see more contributions with the bat in 2008. He bowled well throughout the season once he hit that back of a length and took key wickets finishing with 17 wickets at 24.65. A good finish to the innings meant Dorridge closed on 292 for 8. Once again we had posted a good total batting first at home and the pressure was firmly on the opposition having had us 26 for 4.

Opening bowlers Ball (4-36) and Wing (2-19) took wickets in their first overs and set the tone for the innings. Apart from an 81 run partnership the visitors did not pose any serious threat and were restricted to 166 for 9. Rexworthy also chipped in with 2-24 with his gentle away swingers including an excellent leg-side stumping by Lee Davis. Lee kept wicket for most of the season availability permitting and showed what a good pair of hands he has and his experience was very useful.

We had achieved a psychological win over Penn who had defeated us twice in 2006 and this performance was vital in getting us back on track.

Game Three - 27^th August v Smethwick (Away)

We were down to the final four games of the season starting with Smethwick which I felt was going to be the toughest. They were a very unpredictable side who had mounted a challenge of their own in a good run leading up to this game. They were at home and it would most definitely be a used wicket to suit their overseas spinner who was a good bowler. We were understrength with a few of the regulars unavailable. I won the toss and decided to make first use of the wicket which was likely to deteriote further as the game progressed and make run scoring difficult. Dorridge managed 189 all out in the final over of the innings with Redkar bowling 27 overs taking 4-85. Imran Jamiel in his first season with Dorridge top scored with 68 against his former club. He showed his class against a very experienced bowling attack with an excellent balance of patience and aggression. We had aimed at 220 which would have been a winning score, however 189 was going to be a test and Smethwick would have also fancied taking the points.

Dorridge made a good start and restricted Smethwick to 41 for 2 Ball (1-22) and Abdullah (1-9) off 20 overs. Andrew Wing was then introduced into the attack and produced a fantastic spell (3-34) and ripped out Smethwick’s middle order including the key wicket of David Banks. I have watched Andrew’s, bowling develop over the last 6 years and his return of 18 wickets at 13.94 was a true reflection of his progress. He bowled with good pace and control, unfortunately for him we had four frontline seamers resulting in his opportunities being limited. Another factor was having to bowl 17 overs an hour meant that bowling changes were often dictated by the “over rate” factor. The game entered the final 5 overs delicately poised. Smethwick were 166 for 7. Ball returned and took a further 2 wickets meaning Smethwick needed 8 runs off the final over with 1 wicket in hand. The batters squeezed out 2 runs from the first 3 balls and then settled for the losing draw that kept their promotion hopes alive and gave us 14pts. A good moral victory and further confidence to the side.

Game Four - 1^st September v Newport (Home)

Newport had beaten us comprehensively at their place and had been at the top of the table for most of the season. Raj Bhatia their overseas player was a high quality batsman, what would he produce on our “road” of a wicket? Newport posted a respectable 259 for 6 with Bhatia scoring 115*. Dorridge cruised to victory inside 39 overs with Ball (105*) and Hafeez (78) sharing a 191 run partnership after looking shaky at 31 for 3.

Game Five - 8^th September v Attock (Home)

Our dominance at home was then evident again in the top of the table clash with Attock in the penultimate game. This ensured that we remained unbeaten at home. This record gave the side a great confidence boost and it felt as if we were playing with 12 men in our home games.

Attock asked Dorridge to bat first on a good wicket. Sabir struck twice for Attock early on and Jamiel and Mohamed were both back in the pavilion with the score on 13. Those that have followed Dorridge will have realised that this is always part of the plan and is then followed by the great recovery. Thornley (67) then produced his first half-century of the season in a partnership of 131 with Hafeez. Hafeez (103*) and Ball (92*) then took the final score to 296 for 3 off 55 overs. A partnership of 154 with Ball being particularly severe on the Attock bowlers in the last 10 overs. Dorridge had made the Attock bowlers toil without much luck all afternoon and were well on top at the half way stage.

In reply Attock started nervously and three early wickets from Ball (3-37) kept the pressure firmly on them. Abdullah provided good support without much luck. Abdullah’s return to the Dorridge side in 2007 has been very welcome. His shin injury hampered his pace at the start of the season but his inclusion boosted the firepower of the bowling attack as the season progressed. This game particular showed his ability to beat the bat on a regular basis without finding the edge. Hopefully a step up in standard next season will mean that he is able to find that edge regularly. A prime example, which he will thank me for mentioning is having Marvan Atapattu caught at slip with a genuine outswinger in the game against Lashings. His explosive batting in the middle order was more than useful. Attock recovered and were fairly placed at 127 for 3 off 30 overs. Mohamed‘s off-spin (2-38) then put a firm brake on the scoring rate. His first ten overs conceded 14 runs and included the prize wicket of Imran Sabir (60). The run rate then began to rise steeply and Attock decided to play out the remaining overs without giving us any chance of victory. A thoroughly satisfying performance against the eventual winners of the league having outclassed them in every discipline.

The final game of the season saw us needing 7pts for promotion. We travelled to Penn on a sunny September morning. We managed to restrict them to 199 for 8 with Abdullah taking 4-27. Dorridge knocked off the runs in the 48^th over winning by 6 wickets and thus securing promotion. Andrew Thornley finished on 120*. Andrew had a difficult season and suffered more than others with the damp conditions with his style of batting. He had come good in the last two games and as captain that was particularly satisfying. The Performance of the Season Award was given to Andrew for his innings of 120*.

This report would not be complete without mentioning the success of Dave Ball. Dave has been awarded the Player of the Year 2007 for his 1021 runs at 113 and 48 wickets at 15.19. There is no doubt that when one player contributes in such a way success is very likely, however cricket is a team game and contributions have been made by all as you will have read through the report. He has matured as a player within a season and I look forward to seeing his progress in 2008.I have asked him to work on one aspect of his game, which is sulking after I have taken him out of the attack !!!

In concluding a very fulfilling season. We have had a taste of cricket in Division One in 2004 & 2005, but I firmly believe that we are a better and more experienced side this time round and am looking forward to 2008. The squad is young and full of talent and I am confident that we can achieve more with the same level of dedication, enthusiasm and desire.

Thank you to Keith Wing and members of the Committee for their support through the year. John Edgecombe and Mike Herbert with the book. Nikki for the teas and the loyal band of supporters that followed us through the season. Finally to the players for their commitment and efforts. I look forward to receiving the same support in 2008.

Abdul Hafeez